These are Tanzania’s top five foreign exchange earners

Dar es Salaam. Gold, travel, transportation, manufactured goods and traditional exports were Tanzania’s top five sources of foreign exchange in the year ending June 2026, according to the latest Bank of Tanzania (BoT) Monthly Economic Review.

Gold was the country’s leading foreign exchange earner, generating $5.5 billion during the period. It was followed by travel, which brought in $4.4 billion, while transportation generated $3.2 billion.

Manufactured goods ranked fourth with $2.1 billion, followed by traditional exports, mainly tobacco, cashew nuts and coffee, which generated $1.48 billion.

The figures show that Tanzania’s foreign exchange earnings are increasingly being supported by a combination of mineral exports, tourism, transport services, manufacturing and agricultural commodities.

Overall, exports of goods and services increased by 17.2 percent to $19.92 billion in the year ending June 2026, from $17 billion in the corresponding period of 2025.

Favourable commodity prices, increased domestic crop production and strengthening regional trade also supported the growth in foreign exchange earnings.

Exports of goods increased by 19.2 percent to $11.78 billion in the year ending June 2026, from $9.89 billion in the corresponding period of 2025.

The growth in goods exports was driven largely by gold, manufactured goods, tobacco, cashew nuts and coffee.

Manufactured goods, which ranked fourth among the country’s top five foreign exchange earners, recorded strong growth on the back of demand from neighbouring countries.

The BoT said demand was particularly strong for iron and steel products, glassware and textiles.

Traditional exports also performed strongly, supported by increased volumes of tobacco and cashew nuts, as well as favourable international market prices for coffee.

The second and third positions in the ranking were occupied by service exports, reflecting the growing importance of the services sector to Tanzania’s foreign exchange earnings.

Travel receipts reached $4.4 billion, supported by a 4.5 percent increase in international tourist arrivals to 2,291,479 in the year ending June 2026.

Transportation receipts stood at $3.2 billion, with the increase attributed to higher freight earnings arising from rising transit cargo volumes through Tanzania’s transport corridors.

Overall, service receipts increased by 14.4 percent to $8.14 billion, from $7.12 billion in the corresponding period of 2025.

The BoT said higher earnings from travel and transport services largely explained the increase.

The latest figures place the five leading foreign exchange earners as follows:

Gold — $5.5 billion

Travel — $4.4 billion

Transportation — $3.2 billion

Manufactured goods — $2.1 billion

Traditional exports — $1.48 billion

The performance highlights the breadth of Tanzania’s foreign exchange-generating sectors, with earnings coming from both goods and services.

The BoT said the developments demonstrated the growing contribution of the service sector to foreign exchange earnings and the country’s overall external sector performance.